1. Field of the Invention
The present invention is directed to a method of circumventing a telecommunications service provider's gateways and interconnection points with the public telephone and networks in order to allow a Reseller of telecommunications services to access alternative wireless networks, provide its own interconnection, control the end user telephone and/or other ID number, and in doing so avoid use, cost, and service offering limitations of the telecommunications service provider.
2. Description of Related Art
Today's telecommunications world is dominated by a small number of wireless telecommunications service providers (“Telecoms”), whose dominance provides them the ability to control pricing and limit service offerings to their direct subscribers and resellers aka mobile virtual network operators or MVNOs (“Resellers”). One method of control is to restrict end users from accessing other, competing networks. Historically, Telecoms have specified equipment provided by original equipment manufacturers (“OEMs”) with restrictions built in that limit use of the device to their network alone leaving subscribers and Resellers at the mercy of Telecom network availability and quality, device and service features, and pricing. The telephone or ID number homed in the Telecom voice and messaging gateways places another measure of control in the hands of the Telecom. Through legislative action, some of these controls have been chipped away. As two examples, subscribers were granted the right to change their service contract to another Telecom and keep the same phone number (‘number porting”) and artificial software locks on a device that prevents its use on other Telecom networks were eliminated through “unlocking” legislation. Recent technological developments present new opportunities to loosen that control.
Most telecommunications end users buy service directly from Telecoms. However, an estimated 25% of end users in the US buy their service from mobile virtual network operators (aka MVNOs or “Resellers”) who resell Telecom services and bill their subscribers directly. The government has mandated that Telecoms must resell their service to Resellers. However, they have left it to the invisible hand of competition to set pricing restrictions. After years of consolidation, just 4 Telecoms remain with 2 being dominant and having such market power that they achieve 50% gross margins while the other 2 haplessly circle the toilet bowl praying for government authorization to consolidate. In such an anti-competitive, oligopolistic telecommunications market, Telecoms have control over all aspects of service, what they make available to subscribers and Resellers, and are able to charge Resellers whatever they wish. In doing so they have control over the amount of profit a Reseller can make. In some cases Telecoms charge Resellers who have millions of subscribers more than they charge an individual customer who buys directly from them. As one result, on thin margins most wireless Resellers fail and even the largest are only marginally profitable. As another result, the few remaining small operators in rural markets who need their subscribers to be able to roam on Telecom networks pay 4-5 times what an individual Telecom subscriber pays and are squeezed out of business.
One of the primary controls that Telecoms have is the subscriber phone number. All incoming calls and messages come to the Telecom gateways (and are billable). All outgoing calls and messages display the Telecom's caller ID.
The present invention starts by taking advantage of the fact that simple, minimally functional end user devices formerly referred to as “cellular telephones” are rapidly being replaced by “smartphones”. Smartphones are, in actuality, portable computers and most have the ability to access WiFi and alternative, non-Telecom networks selectively and intelligently (“Intelligent Network Selection”) based upon a controllable set of rules or decisions (“Policy”). Smartphones provide the ability to move control of many service features and functions from the network to the device.
Telecoms have utilized this capability in order to reduce operations costs, reduce the need for additional expensive broadcast licenses, reduce capital outlays for associated network equipment, and even avoid roaming fees when Telecom subscribers travel and use foreign networks. With the proliferation of tens of millions of WiFi hotspots worldwide, Industry estimates indicate that approximately 80% of wireless data is now delivered to smartphones over WiFi rather than using expensive Telecom frequencies. Telecoms have kept all of the benefits of this “offloading” to themselves. Cost reductions have not been passed on to Resellers. Telecoms have no incentive to do otherwise. “Those who can, do.”
The present invention provides a method that takes advantage of one additional technological development, the ability of smartphones to run programs and applications (“Apps”) that replicate Telecom calling and messaging services and enables Resellers with access to alternative telecommunications gateways that are interconnected to the public telephone and messaging networks and have their own blocks of telephone numbers (“Interconnected Resellers”) to circumvent (or “Bypass”) Telecom networks and gateways and/or use Telecom networks in a more cost efficient manner. This results in significant cost savings and additionally provides Interconnected Resellers control of their service offering as well as the subscriber telephone number. The Telecom is reduced to being a proverbial “dumb pipe”.
In the present invention, calling and messaging Apps providing equivalent services combine with Intelligent Network Selection that enables smartphones to access alternative wireless networks like free WiFi when available. For those calls that must go over the Telecom network because WiFi or other alternative networks are not available, the App utilizes VoIP over the Telecom 4G/3G data channels rather than sending a call over the Telecom “circuit-switched” channels which home in the Telecom voice gateway that bills the Reseller per minute of use. In the event that neither WiFi nor Telecom 4G/3G data channels are available, the calling and messaging App and Intelligent Network Selection together send a circuit-switched call to the Interconnected Reseller gateway which then forwards the call to the intended recipient after substituting the Interconnected Reseller's subscriber telephone number. Incoming calls and messages are homed to the Interconnected Reseller gateway so no telephone number substitution is required. The above scenario for voice calls applies also to messaging, albeit utilizing messaging gateways instead.
As one result, the Telecom number never appears. Telecoms are used as “dumb pipes”, only when necessary, and at the lowest possible cost. Current studies indicate that Interconnected Resellers can cut their Telecom voice and messaging airtime costs by 70-80%.
Therefore and for many other reasons as may be known to those of ordinary skill in the art, there is a long-felt, unresolved need for better systems and methods for providing alternate wireless voice and data communication systems and services. Many other prior problems, limitations, obstacles and deficiencies (collectively, “challenges”) will be generally known to those of skill in the art and will otherwise be evident from the following descriptions as well as from thoughtful consideration of any claims that may be added or appended hereto or to an application claiming priority hereto.